Machine for measuring and marking shoe-soles.



T. OBRIEN.

MACHINE FOR MEASURING AND MARKING SHOE SOLES. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 3|. 1913.

1,217,208. Patented Feb. 27,1917.

\ @EI-EIEEIEEJEIEEEHZJEEIEJEMEE Z, ff INVENTO STA Es PATENT THOMAS. oBRInN, or BRO0 KLYN, 1\TEW YORK.

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Specification of Letters Batent.

Patented Feb. 27, 1917.

Application filed March 31', 1913. Serial No. 757,770.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS UBRIEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of New York, borough of Brooklyn, county of Kings, and State of New York, have invented a certain new and useful Machine for Measuring and Marking Shoe- Soles, of which the following is a specification.

This invention is a machine whose purpose is to indicate upon pieces of leather the size of the sole which may be most advantageously and economically out from each respective piece.

Broadly stated, the invention embodies a stamping member provided with a character designating member, which stamping member is actuated for the purpose of printing, stamping, or otherwise designating upon the article, the characters on said stamping member. lVith thisstamping mechanism cooperates a measuring device serving as selecting mechanism whereby the character on the stamping member, which designates the size of the article to be operated upon, is automatically brought into position for marking said article- .In one of its practical embodiments, the invention comprises a table upon which the article to be stamped may be laid, a rotary stamping member positioned for vertical movement with respect thereto, said stamping member embodying a disk having stamping dies on its circumference, means for bringingrany one of said stamping diesinto engagement with the article to be stamped, measuring mechanism movable toward and away from the stamping member, means for imparting rotary motion to the stamping member by the movement of the measuring device, and means for determining the proper engagement between the stamping member and the article to be marked.

In the accompanying drawings, 1 have illustrated different practical embodiments of the invention, but the constructions shown therein are to be understood as illustrative, 0nly,"and not as defining the limits of the invention.

Figure l is a side elevation showing a practical embodiment of the shoe stamping machine of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4' is a fragmental side elevation of one end of the mac'h'me, certain parts being omitted for the sake of clearness.

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal, vertical section, taken on line 5.-5 of Fig. 2, a certain ratchet wheel being shown in full.- v

Fig. 6 is a transverse vertical section on line 66 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 7 is a development of the circumference of the stamping member. 0 V I A indicates a table which maybe suitably supported on a standard A. At one end of the table is a vertical slideway a, in which a bar I), is mounted for vertical movement. The upper end of the bar 1), extends inwardly over the table, and is provided with a bearing B, for horizontal shaft C. Fixed on the forward end of the shaft is a stamping member D, whichmember is provided with circumferentially disposed characters d, illustrated in the drawings as the numerals 2, 2; 3, 3 etc., up to 11, 1 1 indicating shoe sizes in full and half sizes, respectively, (see Fig. 7).

At the opposite end of the table from the stamping member D, is positioned a carriage E, mounted for longitudinal movement on the table, between the guides 6. This carriage is provided with an upwardly and rearwardly extending arm E, and to the outer end thereof is pivoted a rack F, which extends longitudinally of the table and into operative engagement with a gear G, fixed on the shaft C. A guard f is secured to the bearing by means of the screws f, and is operable to retain the rack F against displacement from its cooperating impelled in the direction of the stamping member by a spring I, secured to the table by bolt z', and to the carriage by a bolt 2'', which works in slot a in the tables A gage H, provided with a cam surface, is pivotally mounted on the table A, by a screw it, said gage being in substantial alinement with carriage E. Said gage is provided withan elongated arm H, which arm is acted upon by a spring 72., whereby the gage is normally retained to present the high'point of its'cam toward the path of I I movement of the carriage.

At the lower end. ofbar I), which carries bearing B for shaft C, a treadle or stirrup J is secured by the screw y',which treadle is retained in proper alinement with said bar by a bracket j mounted on standard A. A spring K is secured at one end to the table and, at its opposite end, to the treadle, and said spring is under sufficient tension to normally lift bar 6, and the parts mounted thereon, until the stop Z) engages the edge of the guideway a (see Fig. 1).

The operation of the machine described is as follows With the stamping member in its normally raised position, shown in Fig. 1, the piece of leather to be measured and marked is placed on table A, against the rounded, forward end of carriage E, and, as said carriage is pushed back, against the tension of spring I, the leather is moved into alinement therewith and properly positioned with relation thereto, by the aid of stops L, L, which may be inserted in any two of a series of holes Z in the table. The operator now releases the leather, and immediately the tension of the spring I moves the carriage forward, until the forward edge of the leather engages the high point of the cam surface on gage H, the leather being outlined in Fig. 1 in dot and dash lines. Furthermore, the carriage in its forward movement operates the rack and pinion F and G, respectively, thereby causing the member D to be rotated, for the purpose of bringing the proper numeral (Z into position for marking the leather.

As hereinbefore stated, the disk and carriage operate in unison, i. 6., their relative movement is such that when the carriage moves toward the marking member for a distance corresponding to a shoe size, the marking member will be rotated coextensive therewith. For example, there is approximately of an inch difference in length between two successive sizes of shoes. Now, if the carriage is in a position wherein the distance between the forward end thereof and the gage H is equal to a size 10 shoe,

' and the member D is positioned so that the disk stamp (Z, bearing character 10 will be in proper position for stamping, and from this position the carriage is moved forward of an inch, the rack will operate shaft G to revolve the stamping member to such extent that the disk stamp (Z, which bears the character 9 will be in proper stamping positlon. If, however, the carriage is moved but of an inch, themarking'member will revolve but one-half as'far and the charac-' ter 10 (ten and one-half) will be brought into stamping position. 7 7

When the parts are thus positioned, it is only necessary for the "operator to apply downward pressure on the treadle J, which pressure will overcome the tension of spring K, and cause member D, which is carried by the vertically movable bar Z), to be brought and consequently mark, said leather.

In practice, it is very seldom, however, that a piece of leather is of a length equal to any exact size or half size, but frequently varies slightly therefrom, e. 9., the piece may be equal in length to approximately size 10 Obviously, from the foregoing clescription, a piece of this size would not properly position for stamping any of the characters (Z on the member D, and, if the treadle were operated, the adjacent edges of both the characters designated 10 and 12 would engage the leather, leaving no intelligible mark thereon. This difficulty is obviated by the cam-shaped edge H, which may be operated to compensate for such slight variations in lengths. In the present instance of the 10%- length, the operator adjusts the arm H of the gage in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 3, and to such an extent that the carriage pushes forward with the leather sufiicientlyto revolve member D into a position wherein the character cl,bearing the designation 10, will properly stamp the leather. Thus, said piece of leather will be marked size 10, it being too short for a size 10 (ten and onehalf).

In operation the machine, thus far described, the aforesaid variation in sizes makes it necessary for the operator to carefully watch the marking member, in order that the cam-shaped gage will be operated to preclude the striking of the die when the members (Z, thereon are not properly positioned, and this is facilitated to some extent, by beveling the face of member D, as at cl, and placing thereon characters corresponding to the characters (Z. Moreover, a finger or pointer M is mounted onbearing B, and reaches over the circumference of the member into close proximity to the characters on beveled portion (Z. The last mentioned characters are so disposed relative to the characters (Z, that the pointer M indicates the character which is in proper stamping relation to the leather and further indicates to the operator when none of the characters (Z are in such position.

The machine, as thus far described, requires a certain manual adjustment of the gage, but it is desirable to provide a machine which will be automatic in its operation. I have illustrated in the drawings,

' and will now proceed to describe, means neath the wheel N.

wheel has a number of notches n, in its circumference, equal to the number of characters (Z on member D.

A bushing O is tapped into an orifice in table A, situated in the vertical plane of the axis of the shaft C, and directly be- This bushing is open at its bottom, and its top is closed, except for a square hole, through which is adapted to pass a correspondingly shaped'pawl P. A spring 0, presses against the lower end of said pawl for normally pressing it through the opening in the top of the bushing as far as the collar p on the base of said pawl will permit.

The top end of the pawl P, is beveled, as at p, to correspond in shape to the notches a, in the wheel N, which are so formed that but one side of each notch is radially disposed with respect to the wheel. It will be manifest, from Fig. 5, that, if bar I) is lowered, i. 6., when the shaft C and stamping member D are brought down to stamp a piece of leather, so that the upper beveled end of pawl P engages a notch in the circum ference of the wheel, said pawl will engage the side of one notch and cause said wheel toturn while it is being lowered with the bar and the marking mechanism, at the end of its downward travel, the point of the pawl engages the base of said notch. Durin g this operation, the spring I, beneath the pawl, will form a cushion and ease the shock or jar. Obviously, therefore, if the stamping member D, and the wheel N, are so initially positioned that a character d, on the circumference of the former, is in proper stampingposition when the point of the pawl P is in engagement with the base of a notch in the circumference of the member D, the pawl and wheel will cooperate to insure the proper positioning of the characters (Z, during the operation of the machine.

Furthermore, the fact that the notches in said wheel are formed by radial. and beveled sides will cause any required shifting of the wheel to be in the direction which will shift the marking member to mark the next lower character.

When this automatic mechanism is employed, it operates in conjunction with the gage H, for the reason that, when the star wheel is turned to bring the stamping memher into proper position, the gear G, on shaft C, is also rotated, thereby drawing the carriage E forward. This forward pull, coupled with the tension on the spring I, is just suflicient to overcome the comparatively slight tension on spring it, which operates the gage H, to cause said gage to swing on its pivot h, and thus allow the leather to advance a trifle, 2'. 6., just enough for the proper positioning of the stamping member.

It will thus be seen that operation of marking the pieces consists in backing off the carriage and placing the piece of leather It will be obvious, however, that, if desired,

the pawl and ratchet mechanism may be entirely dispensed with, and the gage H manually operated in the manner hereinbefore set forth to properly position the sole to be stamped.

Moreover, certain details of construction may be modified, from time to time, and the specific structure of the stamping member, herein set forth, may also be changed or modified, without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention. For these reasons, I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself any further than the state of the art may require.

Having thus fully described the invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent is i 1. In a sole marking machine, the combination with sole-supporting means, of a rotatable marking head mounted for reciprocatlng movement relatively to said sole-supporting means, said marking head being prov ded with a series of characters for impressing upon difl'erent soles markings for denoting the lineal dimensions of said soles, a measuring device positioned for contact with the sole, said measuring device embodying two members one of which is movable freely with respect to the other member, means connecting said freely movable member with the marking head for imparting variable rotative movement to the latter, and means independent of the head-rotating means for imparting reciprocating movement to the marking head with respect to the sole supporting devices.

.2. In a sole marking machine, the combination with a sole support, of a rotary marking head mounted for reciprocating movement relatively to the sole support, said marking head being provided with a series of characters for impressing upon difierent soles markings denoting the lineal dimensions thereof, a measuring device the operation of which is dependent upon the length of the sole adapted to be positioned upon the sole support, means controllable by the movement of the measuring device whereby will for imparting to the marking head a reciprocating movement with respect to said sole support, said head reciprocating means being independent of the operation of the l earl-rotating means.

3. In a sole marking machine, he combin-ation with a sole support, of a measuring device embodying a slidable member and a manually controlled gage between which the sole to be measured is adapted to be positioned, said 'age being shiftable at will for presenting different portions of its working face in the path of said slidable member, a marking head, means operable by the movement of the slidable member for shifting the marking head into different po sitions for marking shoe soles according to their sizes, and means for imparting reciprocating movement to said marking head relatively to the sole support.

4. In a sole marking machine, the combination with a sole support, of a sole measuring device embodying a slidable member and a relatively iiXed gage positioned in the path of the slidable member and cooperating therewith in determining the length of a sole adapted to be positioned upon the sole support, a marking head, means operated by the movement of the slidable member for shifting the position of said marking head, and means for efiecting a relative movement between the sole support and the marking head, said relatively fixed gage being provided with a cam-shaped face and said gage being shiftable at will to vary the position of said cam-shaped face with respect to the slidable member.

5. In a sole marking machine, a sole measuring device embodying a slide and a gage member separate from the slide "and positioned in the path ofsaid slide for measuring the length of a. sole, said age member being shiftable at will to different operative positions with respect to the slide, in combination with a rotatable marking head, means controlled by the movement of the slide for imparting rotative movement to the mark ing head, a sole support, and means for effecting a relative movement between the sole support and the marking head.

6. In a sole marking machine, the combination of a marking member, a sole support,

means for effecting a relative movement between the marking member and the sole support, a measuring mechanism including two parts one of which is movable relative to the other, means operated by the movement of one member of said measuring mechanism for shifting the marking member to difi'erent predetermined positions, and means separate from the measuring mechanism foi automatically shifting the marking member for fractional distances corresponding to a slight variation in the sizes of the soles to be operated upon.

7. In a sole marking machine, the combination of a sole support, a marking .mem ber, means for effecting a relative movement between the sole support and the marking member, a measuring mechanism, means operated by the measuring mechanism for shifting the marking member to various predetermined positions, and automatic shifting means embodying a pawl and ratchet operable to change the position of the marking member for fractional distances between the predetermined shift so as to correspond to slight variation in the length of the soles.

8. In a sole marking machine, the combination of a sole support, a rotatable marking head, a reciprocating carrier for presenting the same to the sole to be operated upon, a measuring device dependent for its operation upon the linear dimensions of the sole to be marked, means controlled by the marking mechanism for shifting the marking head to various positions corresponding to the linear measurement of the material as determined by the measuring device, and means separate from the marking mechanism and operated by'the movement of the marking head for imparting rotative movement to said marking head for fractional distances corresponding to a slight variation in the sizes of the soles to be measured.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

THOMAS OBRIEN.

Witnesses: I

H. I. BERNI-IARD, CORNELIUS ZABRISI-IEE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). 0. 

